Peepli Live co-director Mahmood Farooqui acquitted of rape charge

The Delhi high court on Monday cleared Peepli Live co-director Mahmood Farooqui of charges of raping a US citizen, setting aside a lower court verdict that sentenced him to seven years in jail.

The high court quashed the rape charges giving the 44-year-old film-maker benefit of doubt.

The Delhi Police had on June 19, 2015 lodged an FIR against Farooqui on the complaint of the woman, an American citizen of India descent, after which he was arrested. In its charge sheet police alleged that Farooqui had raped the research scholar from Columbia University at his Sukhdev Vihar house in south Delhi on March 28, 2015.

The trial began on September 9, 2015 and the woman appeared in the court on September 14 to record her statement.

The sessions court on July 30, 2016 held Farooqui guilty of rape. He was sentenced to seven years in jail and fined Rs 50,000. Farooqui immediately challenged the guilty verdict in the high court.